Work & commute · Hamilton

Work & commute in Hamilton, MT

45% of Hamilton’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Missoula (9%), Corvallis (2%) and Billings (2%). Half commute less than 3 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

45%

871 of 1,921 working residents

Typical commute

3 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

12 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 1,050 Hamilton residents head out of town to work, 871 work right here, and 4,795 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Hamilton.

1,050live here, work elsewhere

871live and work here

4,795work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Hamilton goes to work

Hamilton (in town)right here

45%871

Missoula43.4 mi away

9%178

Corvallis4.8 mi away

2%36

Billings270.9 mi away

2%33

Darby15.8 mi away

2%31

Bozeman154.3 mi away

2%30

Great Falls160.3 mi away

1%25

Stevensville17.9 mi away

1%24

Helena104.7 mi away

1%23

Kalispell135.9 mi away

1%13

Everywhere elseother towns and states

34%657

Lines run between town centers; a thicker line means more commuters. The top 10 towns each way.

How far

How far Hamilton commutes

Straight-line distance from home to work, for every working resident. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

62%

13%

17%

62%Under 10 mi

8%10–24 mi

13%25–50 mi

17%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Hamilton is a job hub

2.95jobs per working resident

A job hub

2.9 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Hamilton are

5,666 jobs are based in Hamilton. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Hamilton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Hamilton

5,666 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)4%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)79%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month32%

Over $3,333 a month49%

Jobs Hamilton residents hold

1,921 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)15%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)68%

$1,250 a month or less19%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month51%

+26%

Jobs based in Hamilton, 2013 → 2023: 4,499 → 5,666. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

About these numbers

How to read this page

Every worker, home to workThe Census links each worker’s home block to their main job’s block, for jobs covered by unemployment insurance. That’s most jobs, but not the self-employed.

Where the employer saysA job counts where the employer reports it. Some big employers report one address for many sites, which can make a few commutes look longer than they are.

Two surveysFlows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.